Wooden Watch: December 12

Story posted December 15, 2021 in CommRadio, Sports by Dale Ostrander

The top players in the country have now had several weeks to prove why they could be the top player in the country this college basketball season.

Some of the players who were expected to be as good as last year have struggled to have a stellar season this year. However, there have been some players who have started to emerge out of nowhere with a great start to the season.

Here are five players to watch out for so far in the 2021-2022 season:

Ochai Agbaji

The 6-foot-5 senior is the leading scorer so far in the season with an average of 22.4 points per game. He has also been able to lead the Kansas Jayhawks to an 8-1 record on the season so far.

Agbaji is averaging 49.1% from 3-point land this season so far with an average of three made shots from three-point land.

In the past week, he was able to keep his scoring average at his 22.4 points per game mark with 23 points against UTEP and 21 against Missouri. Look for Agbaji to keep his scoring average constant over the holiday stretch.

Kofi Cockburn

The 7-foot, 285 pounds junior from Kingston, Jamaica has returned after his suspension and is back at full force.

Cockburn is averaging 21.4 points per game so far this year and 12.0 rebounds as well. Illinois has played against two top teams this week in Iowa and Arizona.

Cockburn showed up against both of these top teams this week able to get a double-double with 17 points and 18 rebounds vs Iowa. Then another double-double against Arizona; 13 points and 13 rebounds to end his terrific week.

Drew Timme

Gonzaga is going through a rough part of its schedule recently losing to Duke, Alabama, and a close battle with Tarleton Texans. However, Timme has been able to show his worth through the stretch.

Timme is averaging 18.4 points per game on the season with 6.2 rebounds per game so far. He was able to have some great outputs recently against Alabama with 23 points and 10 rebounds and against the Merrimack Warriors, Timme was able to help with 22 points and seven rebounds.

Jaden Shackelford

The Alabama guard is leading the Crimson Tide to a top ten ranking so far in the season.

He is also leading them in scoring with 19.1 points per game this year and helping out on the glass with 6.9 rebounds a game.

Shackelford is shooting an efficient 45% from the field and three-point land, but he is doing it with only 1.9 turnovers a game this year. Look for Shackelford to separate himself this year deeper in SEC play.

Bennedict Mathurin

Arizona is off to a hot start this season with a 9-0 record so far with a big win at Illinois on Saturday, December 11.

Its hot start is in part due to Mathurin who is averaging 18.4 points per game and 6.7 rebounds per game this season.

The 6-foot-6 sophomore had a huge scoring week in some big games. Against Wyoming, he was able to provide 24 points and 10 rebounds.

In an even bigger game, he was able to provide 30 points and 7 rebounds against Illinois to keep the Wildcats undefeated on the young season.

Dale Ostrander is a third-year majoring in broadcast journalism. To contact him, email dko5097@psu.edu.